Developing set-shifting improvement tasks (SSIT) for children with high-functioning autism.
A brief computer-plus-home set-shifting game sharply improved flexibility and cut repetitive behavior in young children with high-functioning autism.
01Research in Context
What this study did
Bergmann et al. (2019) built a short computer game called Tatka plus home tasks. The goal was to help young kids with autism switch rules fast.
Five- to seven-year-olds with high-functioning autism played the game and did short homework. The team tracked flexibility and repetitive acts for six weeks.
What they found
Kids got much better at shifting rules and showed fewer repetitive behaviors. The gains stayed strong six weeks after the last session.
Parents reported the changes at home, not just in the lab.
How this fits with other research
Cohen et al. (1990) first cut stereotypy to near-zero by teaching older students to watch and score their own behavior. SSIT shows a new path: train the brain skill instead of self-monitoring.
Callahan et al. (2023) and Slaton et al. (2025) also slashed stereotypy fast using ABA tactics like RIRD and differential reinforcement. SSIT adds a cognitive-training option that needs no adult to block each response.
Arsham et al. (2025) found bike riding lowered stereotypy in teens. Together these papers say both body and brain workouts can reduce the same behavior, giving you more than one tool.
Why it matters
You now have a low-cost game that parents can run at home and still see big, lasting drops in rigidity and repetitive behavior. Pair it with your favorite ABA stereotypy plan or use it alone when staff time is tight.
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02At a glance
03Original abstract
BACKGROUND: Children with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) experience set-shifting deficit as a part of executive function, which can lead to cognitive and behavioural flexibility deficits and/or restricted behaviours. Despite the increasing body of research on this cognitive deficit, set-shifting training has not been exclusively studied in ASD. AIMS: In this study, a training condition [set-shifting improvement tasks (SSIT)] was developed to improve set-shifting ability; afterwards, the possible effects of these tasks were investigated. METHODS AND PROCEDURES: With the aim of improving set-shifting ability in children with autism, a training program (SSIT), involving a computer game (Tatka, a puzzle game produced by our research team) with some home-based tasks (for generalisation purposes), was developed. Then, in a quasi-experimental design, the effects of SSIT tasks were studied on children (n = 13, 5-7 years old) with high-functioning autism. Outcome measures (pre-training, post-training and a 6-week follow-up) were assessed using Modified Wisconsin Card Sorting Test, Bender-Gestalt Test and Behavioural Flexibility Rating Scale. RESULTS AND OUTCOMES: A significant change was observed in both cognitive (Bender Gestalt, ηp2=0.84 ; WCST; =p20.87 ) and behavioural flexibilities ( ηp2=0.79 ) and also in repetitive behaviours ( ηp2=0.45 ). Furthermore, the result remained stable to some extent for about 1 month after the training condition. CONCLUSIONS AND IMPLICATIONS: Developing the SSIT is just an initial step in the major target of creating cognitive rehabilitation tools to be used by clinicians and parents for children diagnosed with ASD and should be understood as a supplement, rather than an alternative, to the main treatments such as applied behaviour analysis. Future research with larger samples are needed to confirm whether this intervention is effective for children with ASD.
Journal of intellectual disability research : JIDR, 2019 · doi:10.1111/jir.12633